Muhammad (name)

For other uses, see Muhammad (disambiguation).
Muhammad
Pronunciation /moʊˈhæməd/, /moʊˈhɑːməd/, /muːˈhæməd/, /muːˈhɑːməd/,[1] /moʊˈhæmɛd/, /moʊˈhɑːmɛd/, /moʊˈhɑːmɨd/.
Arabic: [mʊˈħæmmæd], [moˈħæmmæd].
Egyptian Arabic: [mæˈħæmmæd].
Turkish: [muˈhammed].
Hindustani: [mʊˈhaːmməd].
Gender male
Origin
Word/name Arabic language
Meaning Praised(thanked)
Region of origin Arab world
Other names
Alternative spelling Mahmad, Mohamad, Mohamed, Mohammad, Mohammed, Muhamad, Muhamed, Muhamet, Muhammed, Muhammet, Mahammud

Muhammad is the primary transliteration of the Arabic given name, مُحَمَّد‎, from the triconsonantal root of Ḥ-M-D; Praise. It is the name of the Islamic prophet. Throughout the Muslim world, it is popular to name a male child after him. This name and its variant transliterations are among the most popular names in the world.

Lexicology

The name Muḥammad is the strictest and primary transliteration of the Arabic given name, محمد, that comes from the Arabic passive participle and triconsonantal root of Ḥ-M-D (Praise); hence Praised, or praiseworthy. However, its actual pronunciation differs colloquially, for example, in Egyptian Arabic: IPA: [mæˈħæmmæd], while in exclusively religious contexts, talking about Islam: IPA: [moˈħæmmæd].

Other Arabic names from the same root include Mahmud, Ahmed, Hamed, and Hamid. The name has one of the highest spelling variants in the world.[2]

Transliterations

Principal

The name is transliterated as Mohammad (primarily in Iran and Afghanistan), Muhammad (in Pakistan, Bangladesh, India, Indonesia and Malaysia), Muhammed (Arab World, primarily in North Africa), Mohamed, Mohammed, Mohamad and Muhammad (Arab World), Muhammed, Muhamed (Bosnia and Herzegovina), Muhammed, Muhamed, Muhammet, or Muhamet (Turkey and Albania).

The name may be abbreviated to Md., Mohd., Muhd., or simply M. because of its utmost meaning, its popularity has meant that it can become hard to distinguish people when there is a multitude with the same name, in some cases it may be to keep a personal name less tied to a religious context. This is only done if the person has a second given name, Some men who have Muhammad (or variant) as a first name choose not to use it, as it is such a common name. Instead they use another given name. For example, Anwar Sadat, Hosni Mubarak, Zia-ul-Haq, Ayub Khan and Nawaz Sharif use their second given name.

Other

In Latin, it is Mahometus (hence Italian Maometto) and Μωάμεθ (Moameth) in Greek. In Catalan and in Spanish, it is Mahoma, in Portuguese, it is Maomé, and in Galician it is Mamede. In Polish and French it is Mahomet. In Russia, it is Мухаммад (Mukhammad), another common spelling is Магомед (Magomed). In Somali, it is Maxamed.In Kurdish it is 'Mihemed. In Senegal and in other West African nations, the variant is Mamadou. In Kazakh, the name is Мұхаммед (Mukhammed). In Chinese, it is written as 穆罕默德 (Mùhǎnmòdé). In Hebrew, it is written as מוחמד (Mukhammad).

Statistics

According to the sixth edition of The Columbia Encyclopedia (2000), Muhammad is probably the most common given name [in the world], including variations.[3] It is estimated that more than 150 million men and boys in the world bear the name Muhammad..

Muhammad was the most common baby boy name in England and Wales in 2009, 2011 and 2012 and the second most popular in 2007 and 2010, combining 14 spelling variations. [4][5]

Mohammed and Mohamed were the first most popular baby name in Département Seine-Saint-Denis (2002, 2008)[6] and in Marseilles (2007, 2009), France.[7] Similarly, since 2008 it is the most popular baby boy name in Brussels and Antwerpen, Belgium's most Muslim populated cities. [8]

In May 2006, it was reported that statistics indicate that some 8,928 Danish Muslims carry the name Muhammad and that in 2004 alone, 167 new-born babies were registered.[9]

In 2009 Mohamed, the most common spelling variant, was ranked 430th in the US.[10] According to the Social Security Administration, Mohammad was ranked 589th, Mohammed 633rd, and Muhammad the 639th most popular first name for newborns in 2006.[11] In the 1990 United States census, the Muhammad variant of the spelling was ranked 4,194 out of 88,799 for people of all ages.[12][13]

Given name

Mohamad

Mohamed

Mohammad

Mohammed

Muhamad

Muhamed

Muhammad

Muhammed

Muhammet

Surname

Patronymics

Derived names

See also

References

  1. ↑ Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary, 10th edition
  2. ↑ Humanism, Culture, and Language in the Near East: Asma Afsaruddin, A. H. Mathias Zahniser - 1997 p 389
  3. ↑ Muhammad, prophet of Islam. The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition. 2001-07
  4. ↑ Mohammed retakes top spot in English baby names
  5. ↑ What can't be named Muhammad?
  6. ↑ http://www.insee.fr/fr/insee_regions/idf/themes/faits_et_chiffres/fc/numero27.pdf
  7. ↑ http://www.laprovence.com/article/region/les-parents-marseillais-ont-craque-pour-ines-et-mohamed
  8. ↑ http://statbel.fgov.be/nl/binaries/BRO09725-N_tcm325-81232.pdf
  9. ↑ JTW News - "Muhammad" Most Popular Among Danish Muslims
  10. ↑ http://www.ssa.gov/cgi-bin/babyname.cgi; searched for Mohamed
  11. ↑ Popular baby names
  12. ↑ Unless otherwise noted, figures are from http://www.name-stats.com/search.php?subject=Muhammad&submit=Search. They don't include different forms of spelling except for 2009 and 2010 for the UK.
  13. ↑ Baby Name Muhammad - Origin and Meaning of Muhammad

External links

Look up Muhammad in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.